How do they work together?
Once a pathogen has broken through the defense barriers of the body, the innate immunity is immediately activated and it is usually able to eliminate the infection by itself.
When the pathogen keeps replicating despite the innate immune response, the adaptive immunity is activated by the innate immune system. Typically it takes 1-2 weeks for the pathogen to be cleared from the body by the adaptive immune system.
When the body is cleared of the pathogen, both systems cease to function. Antibodies, effector cells and memory cells stay in the body which protects the body from potential infections.
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